Pedro Acosta: Marc Marquez title among “greatest comebacks in sporting history”

Marc Marquez is on the verge of completing one of the greatest comebacks in sporting history.

That’s according to compatriot and rival Pedro Acosta, who said Marquez’s long-awaited seventh MotoGP crown will put him among the likes of NBA star Michael Jordan.

“I said already a few weeks ago that it's clear Marc will win the championship," KTM rider Acosta said on Thursday at the Barcelona MotoGP.

“But when he wins, it will be [one of] the biggest comebacks by a sportsman in the history of sport.

“Because we can compare this with Michael Jordan when he went to play baseball and then came back to basketball.

“I think he will be the first MotoGP rider to be able to sit in this table of [Spanish legends] Nadal, Alonso and Gasol.

“For this, I think it will be one of the greatest comebacks of the sport.”

After winning six titles in seven years at Honda, Marquez’s dream career was thrown into doubt by complications from a broken arm at Jerez 2020, diplopia and uncompetitive machinery.

Since the sport began in 1949, no rider has ever reclaimed the 500cc/MotoGP title after being defeated for more than three years in a row.

Marquez has gone five seasons without a crown.

But after splitting from Honda, he revived his career with a switch to Gresini last season, then was snapped up by the factory Ducati squad for 2025 after just seven Desmosedici appearances.

So far, Marquez has won ten of the 14 grands prix and the last 14 races in a row, including Sprints.

Such is his points advantage, the 32-year-old could have his first chance to win this year’s title next weekend at Misano, with six rounds remaining.